What The Heart Wants
by Alani
Summary: Will Katrina McGuire sacrifice everything for George Mason despite George acting so strangely? Will he risk starting something with Katrina despite knowing his fate? Will he listen to what his heart or head wants ? Please R&R. Set before season two and during season two.
1. PROLOGUE

**24: SACRIFICE **

**SUMMARY**: Will CTU Intelligence Agent Katrina McGuire sacrifice everything for George Mason even though he's acting so strangely? Will he risk starting something with Katrina despite knowing his fate? Please R&R. Set before season two and during season two.

**DISCLAIMER**: I don't own the 24 characters.

**PROLOGUE **

Jack Bauer entered the hospital room to find it empty. He put down the two coffee cups and went to the bathroom. He knocked once but no one answered so he opened it and peered inside.

" Oh my God," he said as he knelt down by her, " Katrina, what have you done?". He asked the still Katrina. Blood had sprayed the walls of the small bathroom as it flowed steadily from Katrina McGuire's wrists. He noticed a small pocketknife nearby, his pocketknife.

His mind went briefly back to the hug she had given him and he realised she must have taken the knife from his back pocket. He cursed himself as he grabbed a two towels to wrap around her wrists.

They were immediately soaked through as he pressed the nurses emergency button near the door. When nobody came, he ran from the room and shouted ,

" I need help in here! _Now_!"

Katrina opened her eyes and found herself back in her bed. Her wrists were bandaged and throbbed with pain. She turned to see Jack sitting next to the bed.

" What happened?" she asked even though she knew.

" You tried to kill yourself," he said, a little more harshly than he intended, " Katrina, I know you've been through a lot but"

" Jack, you have no idea what I've been through," Katrina interrupted, her dark brown eyes filling with anguished tears, " I lost the man I loved and I lost his baby a few hours later. I've lost everything…I'm alone now."

" No you aren't," Jack replied, " You've still got me,"

Katrina managed a small smile but turned her head away. Jack nursed his coffee which was now stone cold as he thought about what happened the last few hours-and the last words George Mason ever said to him.

* * *

Jack turned around in his seat and pointed his gun at George Mason, who had managed to stowaway on his plane without him or anyone else noticing.

" Hey, hey, service is bad enough on this flight, you don't have to shoot me," George joked as Jack lowered his gun.

" George, what the hell are you doing here?" Jack demanded.

" Felt like taking a ride," George replied. He handed something to Jack, " Got something for you." It was a parachute.

They argued a little bit but Jack knew George was right. The man was dying and Jack still had a life.

" Are you sure you want to do this?" Jack asked as they swapped seats.

" I'm meant to do this," George told him as Jack gave him the instructions.

" Jack, do me favour?"

" Sure. Anything."

" Take care of Katrina for me. She's gonna be a mess once she knows I'm gone," George said. He knew Jack and Katrina were becoming good friends.

" Sure," Jack agreed.

" She's having my baby you know," George informed him and Jack nodded.

" Yeah she told me just before I left," Jack said. George looked wistful and Jack felt sorry for the man who's never going to know his child.

" It's time," George said and a few minutes later Jack ejected the plane. George took the plane into a dive and images of Katrina flashed in his mind-kissing her in his office back in CTU, making love in her apartment, then a week later finding out his fate. Another image flashed in his mind, one of her telling him she was pregnant with his kid.

_I'm sorry Kat_, he thought.

* * *

Katrina woke with a start to find Jack dozing in the chair next to her. She glanced at the window and saw it was the following morning. He hadn't been kicked out of her room yet. She smiled sadly, he'd been a good friend to her.

Jack woke up himself, " Sorry," he said, " I must have dozed off."

" You don't have to stay here you know," she told him, " I promise I won't do anything stupid."

" I could do with some food," Jack said sitting up, " How about you?"

" I could do with some potato chips," she said and he nodded.

" I'll be back in about twenty minutes, there's a café down the street." Jack said and left. The phone on her bedside table rang and she ignored it at first. But it kept ringing so she grabbed it.

" Hello?"

There was static and a long pause.

" Hello?" she tried again. She could hear someone breathing on the other end.

" Katrina?"

" Yes, who's this?"

" It's me, George."

" That's ridiculous. George Mason died last night," she snapped, wondering if she was still asleep and this was all a bad dream.

" Well, it turns out I didn't. It's really me Katrina," the voice replied. He sounded far away.

" Well, it must be a prank," she decided.

" It isn't-look, you've got to come and meet me but don't tell anyone," the man instructed.

" Meet you-where?"

" At your place," George said, " Come quickly but come alone," then he hung up.

Katrina stared down at her phone in shock. It couldn't have been George! Jack saw the plane go down, nobody could have survived that bomb.

It has to be a prank, she told herself, climbing out of bed and hurrying to the bathroom to get changed. She didn't have long before Jack returned with the food. He wouldn't leave her alone for too long.

She caught a taxi back to her apartment as her car was still at CTU. She wondered if George still had the keys to her apartment as she hurried up to elevator and headed for the third floor.

She was about to unlock her door when it swung open and a man appeared. She gasped and stared, not quite believing what she was seeing.

" It…can't be," she moaned just before everything went black.

* * *

Jack looked around at the empty room as he felt a sense of déjà vu. He checked the bathroom but she wasn't there. He checked her drawers but they were empty. He noticed her bag and phone were gone also.

He hurried to the nurses station, " Where's the patient in room 202?" he demanded.

The nurse looked up at him, " Patient?" she repeated. " She should still be in there."

" Well she isn't," Jack barked, " Where is she?"

The nurse checked the computer, " Well apparently she discharged herself not more than twenty minutes ago."

" That can't be right. She's very unwell," Jack said.

" I'm sorry but-"

" That's okay, I'll look for her myself." Jack sighed. He should have never left her alone. " Dammit!"


	2. Chapter One

**CHAPTER ONE **

Katrina's shift at CTU ended an hour ago as George made his way to her apartment. She should be home by now and he had officially left CTU for good. He was going to make his last few hours count and be with the woman he loved.

He knocked on the door and a few seconds later she opened it and let him in.

" How are you feeling?" she asked as he pulled her into his arms.

" Better now," he replied as he buried his hands in her shoulder length brown hair and captured her lips with his own. They headed for the bedroom but she stopped him from unbuttoning her blouse, " Are you sure you're up to this?" she asked.

" How about you? Should we be doing this in your…condition?" he countered. She just smiled and put her arms around his neck as they kissed passionately. An hour later, she rested her head on his chest. He hadn't liked her seeing him naked, his body was ravaged with radiation poisoning but she had insisted.

" You asked before if I was up to this," he said, " Well, I reckon if I died now, I'd die a very happy man."

" Don't say that," Katrina said softly.

" Why not? It's the truth," George told her and Katrina needed to change the subject.

" Remember a while ago you thought I was the one who was selling CTU information to the terrorists but in actual fact the real mole had framed me?" Katrina made a face, " I always knew Shane hated me but I didn't think he'd go as far as framing me."

" Believe me, I'll never forget that. I was such a bastard to you. And even after I had you…interrogated, you still forgave me."

" You were just doing your job," Katrina reminded him and George looked down at her. He truly didn't deserve Katrina.

* * *

A month ago  
CTU Los Angeles

" Look at this, " Michelle Dessler accessed Katrina's workstation from her own computer, " Look at all these calls she made to Jarrah. Every few hours," Jack Bauer watched over Michelle's shoulder as she demonstrated. His heart sank, the evidence was all there.

Katrina McGuire, his friend, was the one who infiltrated CTU.

" I can't believe she's the mole," Tony Almedia said, " I guess it's always someone you'd lest suspect."

" Where is she now?" Jack asked them.

" George Mason's office," Tony replied.

* * *

Meanwhile, up in George's office, Katrina had found herself in George's arms and was kissing him. It wasn't at all professional and she had tried her hardest to keep her personal and professional lives separate. But it wasn't to be. She loved George and had just admitted to him that she was in love with him.

" You're way too good for me," George told her tightening his arms around her waist just as his lips found hers for a long and searching kiss. He was startled when the building's alarm went off and he could see Jack and the security guards running up the stairs to his office. They jumped apart guiltily as Jack barged into George's office, his weapon aiming at Katrina.

George looked on shocked as the security guards arrested Katrina. " Jack, what the hell are you doing?"

" It's Katrina, " Jack said to him as they lead her out, " She's the mole."

" What? You've got to be kidding," George stared at Katrina who was looking just as shocked.

" Jack! You've got the wrong person. It's not me," she was protesting.

" We found evidence on your computer," Jack told her. " It's all there. You made several calls to the terrorist."

" I'm telling you the truth Jack," Katrina protested, " Someone set me up!"

Jack turned to George," Since I was the one who hired her, I should head up the interrogation."

" No Jack," George shook his head as he glared at Katrina. How could it be that just a moment ago she had been in his arms and he had been kissing her? Had she playing him the whole time? " I'm in charge so I'll be the one to interrogate her," he gave the security guards instructions and followed them to the Holding room.

" Fine," Jack replied.

They handcuffed her to the chair in the holding room and Jack went into the adjoining room so that he could watch the interrogation through the one way mirror.

" George-" Katrina started to say but George whirled on her.

" Shut up," he barked as he sat down across the table from her and opened up a file Jack had given him. It was her personal file and he stared down at a photograph clipped to the front cover of the folder.

" Why would you do this Katrina?" George asked as he rifled through the pages of the file until he came across the pages he was looking for.

" I didn't do anything!"

George fixed his eyes on her pretty face sternly. She looked confused and her brown eyes were so full of love for him that he began to feel a tide of emotions. Regret, guilt and also love for Katrina. But he had to be real and face the truth. This woman sitting across from him was an enemy of his country.

" Katrina, Jack handpicked you personally from the pool we ran several months ago because he thought you were one of the best intelligence agents in LA. " he held up the three pages that was her CV," Are you telling me that these credentials are all a lie?"

" No, they're all true. I worked hard for this job and I'd never betray my country." Katrina said and crossed her arms, she was starting to act defiant now.

George sighed and opened the door to the room and beckoned someone in. Katrina's face went white when she saw who it was.

" I didn't want it to come to this," George told her, " I'm sure you know Eric."

" George, please-"

" Go ahead Eric," George told him and he picked up a taser from his cart and tasered her. George tried not to close his eyes at her screams and his heart went out to her.

She's not the terrorist, George told himself, She can't be!


End file.
